Two
new
e-privacy
approaches

Two new e-privacy approaches ...

You may have seen two very visible websites introduce their cookie policy updates this week; ft.com and bbc.co.uk. As you would expect from two very high pro/wp-content/uploads/file brands, they have gone quite far towards the “letter of the law”. However, I am pleased to see that they are both opt-out solutions which assume you consent to cookies unless you choose to do something about it.

They both have very visible initial statements (see below)

They both assume consent unless action is taken

They both provide further transparent information on what the site uses cookies for

They differ significantly in the way they offer cookie management

The FT does a similar thing to our own site – provides information on browser management and links to other opt out mechanisms

The BBC offers a neat cookie management panel, similar to BT.com (but note the key difference – it is possible to opt out of “performance cookies” on the BBC website)

Our view is still very much that because of the high pro/wp-content/uploads/file of these sites they have chosen, and are able, to go more towards the “letter of the law”. For many brands this is still a bit further than can easily be achieved without significant impact on the business; hence taking steps to comply with the “spirit of the law” is likely to remain the main objective. However, with brands like the FT and the BBC leading the way with informing users of cookies and their uses, it may not be too long before more and more brands can offer similar opt out solutions without the threat of losing significant reporting data and Insight.